The ICMM holds a tribute conference for researcher Gloria Platero: “My career has been funny thanks to collaborating with all of you”

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On February 20, the Madrid Institute of Materials Science of (ICMM‑CSIC) held a tribute day in honor of professor and researcher Gloria Platero, who is becoming a scientífica ad honorem upon her retirement. Former PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, as well as current collaborators gathered to recall their work together and to highlight Platero’s contributions to her field and to science.

The event, titled “Qubits, lattices and topology”, opened with remarks from the director of ICMM‑CSIC, José Ángel Martín Gago, who described Platero as a “tireless fighter” who “has built a school” and thanked her for everything she has done “for the Institute and for science in Spain.”

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The praise continued throughout the fourteen talks held in the institute’s main auditorium. The day was organized by Sigmund Kohler, senior researcher at ICMM‑CSIC, together with Mónica Benito and Beatriz Pérez, whose PhD theses were supervised by Platero.

Speakers shared comments such as “Gloria is still my boss because of the mark she left,” as noted by Fernando Domínguez, who also emphasized that she placed the group “in an international context.” All former PhD students highlighted the “support” they received from Platero and her role as a “mentor,” in addition to her scientific leadership, as Ramón Aguado—another of her former doctoral students—pointed out.

One of the most emotional moments came from her daughter, also named Gloria, herself trained as a physicist, who expressed how “proud” she felt of her mother and how much she had learned from her since childhood. Other participants included Rosa López, Platero’s first PhD student, as well as David Sánchez, Álvaro Gómez León, Miguel Bello, Jordi Picó, Juan Zurita, and Dad Fernández.

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Grateful for the countless expressions of affection she received, Platero—present throughout the entire event—closed the conference with heartfelt words, recalling the best moments shared and the many trips taken with those in attendance: “My career has been funny thanks to collaborating with all of you,” she said.

In an improvised speech, Platero also highlighted her strong professional ties with Germany and her efforts to secure resources, especially during the difficult years before Spain joined the EU: “Thanks to European projects, many theses were able to be funded,” she noted. She added that she hopes “to keep working as much as I can.” Her words echoed what both her daughter—“No one believes she’s going to stop doing research”—and the ICMM director had predicted earlier: “This is a ‘see you later,’ because we will have Gloria for a long time.”

 -- Verónica Ramírez. Unidad de Cultura Científica--